Connector and snap-in contact therefor



. April 18, 1961 w. H. MCKEE 2,980,881

CONNECTOR AND SNAP-IN CONTACT THEREFOR Filed April 14, 1958 2Sheets-Sheet 1 m E E W nun INVENTOR. WILLIAM H. M KEE ATTORNEY April 18,1961 w. H. MCKEE CONNECTOR AND SNAP-IN CONTACT THEREFOR Filed April 14,1958 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 WILLIAM H. MEKEE BY 1 I ATTORNEY dividual contactsto the respective. leads therefor.

ited States CONNECTOR AND SNAP-IN CONTACT THERE-FOR Filed Apr. 14, 1958Ser. Nmnsass lliClaim's. (Cl. 339--192) This invention relates toconnectors, especially of the multiple contact type, and moreparticularly to a connector and snap-in contact therefor.

In connectors of the class herein considered, a casting formed ofinsulating material is provided with an opening extending therethrough,and mounted within the opening is a contact having a tail for connectionto an electric conductor and having a mouth for inserting thereinto theprong of a male plug to establish eletcrical connection therewith.Connectors of this typeare widely used, and ordinarily comprise multiplerows of prongreceiving contacts. They are frequently referred to in theart as Jones plugs or Jones connectors.

Two problems in particular exist in such multiplecontact connectors: Thefirst is concerned with assembly thereof, and the second with distortionor misalignment of the contacts in the openings or passages thereforwhich sometimes arises as the result of soldering the. inh- Suedistortion or misalignment may make it difiicult, if not impossible, toinsert the prongs of a plug thereinto. Traditionally, the socket castinghas had the openings therein equipped with stops along the face thereofto prevent the passage of the contacts therethrough, while the oppositeends of the passages are free of obstructions to permit insertion of thecontacts. Thereafter, a backing plate has been placed across the rearsurface of the casting and secured thereto for confining the contactswithin their respective openings. It will be apparent that such assemblyprocess is time-consuming and costly. 8

Usually, the contacts are connected to lead wires in a hand solderingoperation; and since the contacts which define the multiple rows arenecessarily close together, it has been found that the personnelperforming the soldering step will often bend the projecting tails ofthe con tacts laterally to increase the spacing therebetween, with theresult that the mouths of the contacts become closed, distorted orgenerally off-centered. To some extent, this is due to the nature of thecontacts which must have spring legs to tightly grip a prong insertedtherebetween so as to assure a good electrical connection therewith.

With a view towards these disadvantages, an object of the presentinvention is to provide a connector structure which will overcome thesame. Another object of the invention is that of providing a connector.socket casting and snap-in contact combination, wherein the contacts arepressed into the openings therefor in the same manner practiced in thepast, but in which the contacts are automatically locked or constrainedwithin the passages as a part of their insertion.

Still another object is in the provision of a connector socket castingand contact assembly in which the contacts are constrained within theopenings therefor in a manner such that the mouths of the contacts arenot distorted, misaligned, etc. even though the contact tails are bentin the solder connection thereof to lead Wires. Still another object isto provide a multiple-contact connector atent comprising a castinghaving contactreceiving openings the contacts in the insertion thereofinto the passages to permit them to ride over the cams, and in which thecontacts are provided with locking recesses adapted to seat the camstherein whereby the interlock between the cams and recesses confines theterminals inthe socket casting.

A further object is that of providing a socket casting and snap-incontact arrangement of the type described, in which the contacts can beremoved from the passages by rev'ersely twisting the contacts todisplace the recesses thereof from the cams. Still a further object isin the provision of a multiple-contact socket casting, wherein eachcontact-receiving passage is provided with locking ribs that extendthrough notches in the contacts and are thereby interposed betweenadjacent contact surfaces whereby they are eifective to prevent tiltingor tipping of the contacts at the'mouths thereof even though the contacttails may be bent.

Yet a further object is in the provision of a connector socket assemblyof the character described, wherein the cams are disposed adjacentdiagonally oriented corners of the contact-receiving openings, while thelocking ribs are disposed adjacent the opposite diagonal corners; and inwhich each contact has outwardly biased spring legs united at 'one endto define a contact tail, and at the other end being equipped withreversely turned friction elements disposed in adjacency with each otherto define a contact mouth-the locking ribs being disposed between therespective spring legs and friction elements thereof whenthe cams areseated within the interlocking recesses therefor in the respectivespring legs. Additional ob jects and advantages of the invention willbecome apparent as the specification develops.

An embodiment of the invention is illustrated in the accompanyingdrawings, in which Figure 1 is a top plan view of the face of aconnector socket embodying the invention; Figure 2 is a bottom plan viewof the connector socket shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is an end view inelevation of the connector socket; Figure 4 is a side view in elevationof one of the connectors; Figure 5 is an end view in elevation of aconnector; Figure 6 is a perspective view of the connector; Figure 7 isan enlarged, broken top plan view of one of the contact-receivingpassages, in the connector socket; Figure 8 is an enlarged, brokenvertical sectional view taken along the line 88 of Figure 7; Figure 9 isan enlarged, broken vertical sectional view taken along the line 9-9 ofFigure 7; Figure 10 is an enlarged, broken transverse sectional viewtaken generally along the line 10-10 of Figure 9, and showing in brokenlines the position of a contact partially inserted into the passagetherefor; Figure 11 is an enlarged, broken transverse sectional viewalso taken generally along the same plane as that of Figure 10, andshowing in broken lines the position of a contact after completeinsertion thereof into the passage; and Figure 12 is an enlarged, brokenvertical sectional view generally similar to that of Figure 9, butshowing a contact in position within the passage, portions of thecontact being broken away for purposes of better illustration.

While the invention is clearly usable with a connector having a singlecontact or socket, it is illustrated in Figures 1 through 3 inconjunction with a multiple-row connector socket designated in generalwith the numeral 15. The connector socket 15 comprises the femaleelement of a connector assembly, and is adapted for use with'a male plug(not shown) having multiple rows of terminals respectively insertableinto the contact openings of the socket 15 o The connector socketcomprises a block or casting 16 formed of insulating material, and isreferred to as a casting since customarily it is a molded product ThePatented Apr. 18, 1961 passages or openings 20, and in the specificillustration there are 32 such passages. Surrounding the casting 16, andsecured thereto by any suitable means such as pins or rivets, is a frame21 that may be used in mounting the connector socket. The structure thusfar described is'well known in the art, and further details concerningthe same are therefore unnecessary.

It will be noted in Figures 1 through 3 that the passages 20 comprisingthe rows 17 and 18 are oriented in the same direction, while thosedefining the rowj19 are at right angles thereto. The purpose of thisarrangement is that of polarizing-the'connector sothat a plug can beconnected thereto only when properly oriented--th'at is, in onepredetermined relationship'therewith. Also, the casting may have acentral opening or passage 22 extending therethrough equipped with apinor contact 23 of diiferent construction than the remaining contactswhich will be'described in detail hereinafter; and it'may serve as theground connection or ground shield for the connector, and also as aguide for receipt of a mating pin provided by a connector plug to alignsaid plug'in both the longitudinal and transverse directions withrespect to the connector socket15. For this reason, the pin 23 is arelatively sturdy element, and as shown in Figure 2 is equipped with atail 24 for connection to an electric lead wire. I

Each of the passages 20 has a snap-in contact 25 posipassage andintermediate the ends thereof, are cams 53 tioned therein, and eachcontact comprises a pair of spring legs 26 and 27 which are integrallyconnected at the lower ends thereof to define a tail 28 having anopening 29 extending transverselytherethrough to facilitate connectionof a lead wire thereto. The spring legs throughout the tail portionthereof are in substantial adjacency and may be equipped, respectively,with ribs 30 and 31 to stifien the same. At the upper end of the tail28, the legs are bent laterally to define shoulders 32 and 33, and thenextend upwardly and outwardly therefrom. The legs 26 and 27 at the upperends thereof are reversely turned to form inwardly and downwardlyconverging portions or friction legs 34 and 35 that define a mouth 36therebe tween, into which is inserted the prong of a male plug which isthen frictionally engaged by the leg portions 34 and 35 to efiectelectrical connection therewith.

The legs 26 and 27 intermediate the upper ends thereof and therespective shoulders 32 and 33 are provided with locking recesses 37 and38 along diagonally opposite edges thereof, as is most evident fromFigure 5. This figure also makes it apparent that the'recesses arealigned with each other along the vertical axis of the contact. At theupper ends of the legs are notches or channels 39 and 40 which are alsooriented along diagonally opposite edges of the spring legs. 'Referringagain to Figure 5, it will be seen that the recess 37 and notch 39 ofspring leg 26 are disposed along opposite edges thereof; and similarly,the recess 38 and notch 40 of the leg 27 are so oriented. Preferably,the legs adjacent the upper ends thereof are provided, respectively,with inwardly projecting dimples or protuberances 41 and 42; and thefriction legs thereof have outwardly projecting dimples 43 and 44,respectively aligned with the dimples. 41 and 42, which then serve tolimit the compression of the outwardly biased friction legs when acompressive force is applied thereacross.

The passages 20 will be described in connection with Figures 7 through 9in particular; and it will be noted in Figure 7 that the passage isgenerally rectangular, and in transverse section has a restricted upperend portion 45 defined between the arcuate edges 46 and 47 at theentrance thereof whichis disposed along the upper surface or face 48 ofthe casting 16. The edges along the ends of the restricted passageportion 45 are also slightly rounded, as is shown at 49 and 50 in Figure9. For identification, the lower enlarged end portion of the passage isdenoted with the numeral 51, and the entrance thereof is oriented alongthe rear or bottom surface 52 ofthecasting' 1 a a and 54 which projectoutwardly and into the enlarged portion of the passage from the sidewalls 55 and 56. Each of the cams has an upwardly and inwardly inclinededge 57, as is most apparent in Figure 8. Similarly disposed adjacentdiagonally opposite corners of the passage are locking or stabilizingribs 58 and 59 (Figures 9 and 8, respectively). Each of the locking ribshas an upwardly and inwardly inclined cam edge or surface 60.

v The stabilizing ribs are spaced slightly from the side walls 55 and 56of the passage, and extend downwardly therealong, and at the same timeproject outwardly from the end walls'61 and 62. Thus, the'cam 53 and rib58 are disposed along the side wall 55, while the cam 54 and rib 59 arelocated along the side wall 56.

In assembling the casting and contacts, each contact is first orientedso that the spring legs 26 and 27 thereof are disposed along the sidewalls 55 and 56 of the passage, and the spring legs must be compressedso as to permit insertion thereof into the passage entrance at the rearsurface 52 of the casting. Bach contact is then pressed upwardly intothe passage toward the face 48 of the casting. As the contact movesupwardly, the spring legs ride onto the cams 53 and 54 whereupon thecontact in its entirety is twisted or turned slightly within thepassage, as shown in Figure 10. As a result of the orientation of thecams, locking recesses 37 and 38 and notches 39 and 40, this twistingaction always occurs no matter which of the spring legs is adjacent therespective side walls of the passage, for the uninterruptedupper edgesof the spring legs (that is, the edges opposite the notches 39 and 40)engage the cams. It will also be noted in FigurelO that as the twistedcontact approaches the locking ribs 58 and 59, such ribs move throughthe notches 39 and 40 of the spring legs so as to be disposed,respectively, between the spring leg 26 and frictionportion 34 andspring leg 27 and its friction portion 35. 3 1

Continued upwardmovement of the contact further inserts the locking ribsbetween the respective spring legs and friction portions thereof, andultimately brings the locking recesses 37 and 38 into alignment with theearns 53 and 54. At this time, the inherent outwardly directed biasingforce of the. spring legs, which is constantly endeavoring to align thecontact within the passage, causes the cams to seat within the recesseswith the result that the contact straightens itself and assumes theposition shown in Figures 11 and 12. Consequently, the contact isanchored or locked within the passage for further upward movement isprevented by the abutment of the upper ends of the spring. legs with thestop shoulders 69 defined by the narrowed portion 45 of the passage, anddownward movement of the contact is constrained by'the cams which engagethe upper edges of the recesses 37 and 38. V V

Such insertion of each contact is accomplished by imparting an upwardlydirected force thereto for the twisting action occurs automatically. Asa result, automatic equipment now in use for inserting all of thecontacts simultaneously into the passages therefor in connectorassemblies now known, may still be employed. However, in the event thatit should be necessary to remove a contact from the passage therefor,such removal is ac 'complished by twisting thesame into the positionshown in Figure 10, whereby the cams are unseated from theirinterlocking relation with the recesses 37 and 38, and by sufiicient tobend the same.

ribs if a force is applied to the contact which tends to shift itlaterally within the passag e-that is, from up to down, or vice versa,as viewed in Figure 11. If the tail of the contact is bent, theresultant force active on r the contact is of such naturethat is, onethat tends to displace the upper end of the contact laterally.

While in the foregoing specification an embodiment of the invention hasbeen set out in considerable detail for purposes of making an adequatedisclosure thereof,

opening, and a contact for each of said openings and equipped with apair of outwardly biased spring legs each having a recess alongdiagonally opposed edges thereof, said recesses being respectivelyalignable with said cams for seating the same therein, said cams beingeffective to rotate said contact to a generally diagonal orientationwithin said opening during insertion of the contact thereinto, thebiasing force of said spring legs being effective to return the contactto its prerotated position when said recesses are aligned with said camsto snappingly seat the cams therein.

2. The assembly of claim 1 in which said cams have upwardly and inwardlyinclined cam surfaces to effect the aforesaid rotation of the contacts,and in which said cams are oriented along the side walls of saidopening.

3. In an assembly of the character described, a con nector socketcasting provided with an opening extending therethrough, and a contactseated within said opening, said contact having a pair of inwardlycompressible, outwardly biased spring legs, each of said legs having areversely turned, inwardly converging friction leg portion integrallyjoined thereto at an upper end thereof, each of said spring legs at theupper end thereof being provided with a notch therein, said openingbeing provided with a pair of stabilizing ribs respectively aligned withsaid notches and extending therethrough so as to be disposed between therespective spring legs and friction leg portions thereof, said springlegs each being provided with a recess along a longitudinal edgethereof, said opening being equipped intermediate the ends thereof witha pair of cams respectively aligned with said recesses and being seatedtherein, said cams being effective to constrain said contact within saidopening.

4. The assembly of claim, 3 in which said notches are disposed alongdiagonally opposite edges of said spring le s.

5; The assembly of claim 3 in which said recesses are oriented alongdiagonally opposite longitudinal edges of said spring legs.

6. In a connector socket assembly, a casting of insulating materialprovided with a plurality of generally rectangular openings extendingtherethrough, each opening being provided intermediate its ends with apair of stabilizing ribs extending longitudinally thereof adjacentdiagonally opposite corners of the opening, a contact seated in each ofsaid openings, each contact having a pair of outwardly biased springlegs, each of said legs having a reversely turned, inwardly extendingfriction leg integrally joined to said respective spring leg at theupper end thereof, each of said contacts being provided with a notch foreach spring leg at the upper end thereof respectively aligned with saidstabilizing ribs for passing the same therethrough and into positionbetween the appropriate spring leg and friction leg portion thereof, andmeans for constraining each of said contacts within the openingtherefor, said means comprising a pair of cams disposed adjacentdiagonally opposite corners of said opening, said spring legs eachhavinga recess along an edge thereof, said recesses-being respectivelyalignable with said cams for seating the same therein, said cams beingeffective to rotate said. contact to a generally diagonal orientationwithin said opening during insertion of the contact thereinto, thebiasing force of said spring legs being efiective to return the contactto its prerotated position when said recesses are aligned with said camsto snappingly seat the same therein.

. 7. The apparatus of claim 6 in which saidstabilizing ribs and'camsaredisposed along opposite, diagonally oriented corners of the respectiveopenings.

8. In a connector socket assembly of the character described, a socketcasting of insulating material having a generally rectangular openingextending therethrough,

a pair of cams respectively oriented within said opening intermediatethe ends of the side walls thereof and adjacent diagonally disposedcorners, a pair of stabilizing ribs also disposed within said openingalong the respective end walls thereof adjacent the oppositely orienteddiagonal corners, and a contact seated in said opening,

said contact comprising a pair of facing, outwardly biased spring legsintegrally connected at their lower ends and each having at the upperend thereof an integral reversely turned friction leg portion adjacentthe friction leg portion of the other spring leg, said spring legs beingcompressible for insertion thereof into said opening and beingengageable with said cam ribs during such insertion and carnmed therebyinto a generally diagonal disposition within said opening, said contacthaving a notch therein at the juncture of the respective spring legs andfriction leg portions thereof, said notches being in alignment with therespective stabilizing ribs for passing the same therethrough and intoposition between the respective spring legs and friction portionsthereof, said spring legs each having a recess therein along the edgethereof aligned with one of said cams and being dimensioned to seat thesame therein when the contact is inserted into the opening to an extenteffecting alignment of the cams and recesses.

9. In an assembly of the character described, a connector socket castingprovided with an opening extending therethrough, and a contact seatedwithin said opening, said contact having a pair of inwardlycompressible, out wardly biased spring legs equipped at the upper endsthereof with reversely turned, inwardly converging friction legportions, each of said spring legs at the upper outside edge thereofimmediately adjacent the reversely turned portion being provided with anupwardly facing notch therein, said notches being diametrically opposedwith respect to one another, said opening being equipped with a pair ofstabilizing, diametrically opposed, longitudinally extending ribsrespectively aligned with said notches and extending therethrough so asto be disposed between the respective spring legs and friction legportions thereof.

10. An assembly in accordance with claim 9 in which said contact isprovided with a tail extending outwardly from said opening forconnection with an electrical lead wire, said stabilizing ribs beingelfective to constrain movement of the upper end portion of said springlegs in the event said tail is bent laterally from the normal positionthereof.

11. In a connector socket assembly, a casting of insulating materialprovided with a plurality of generally rectangular openings extendingtherethrough, each opening being provided intermediate its ends with apair of stabilizing ribs extending longitudinally thereof and ad jacentdiagonally opposite corners of the opening, a contact for each of saidopenings, each contact having a pair of outwardly biased spring legsequipped at the upper ends thereof with reversely turned, inwardlyconverging friction leg portions, each of said contacts at the upperoutside edge thereof immediately adjacent the reversely turned portionbeing provided with an upwardly facing notch therein, said notches ofeach pair of spring legs being diametrically opposed with respect to oneanother and being respectively aligned with said stabilizing ribsrespectively passing the same therethrough and into position between therespective spring leg and friction leg 'portions thereof, and meansconstraining each of said contacts within the opening therefor.

1 References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,730,689 Lamb et al. Ian. 10, 1956 8;: Gilbert Feb. 7, 1956 EannarinoFeb. 26, 1957 Aquillon et a1. May 13, 1958 FOREIGN PATENTS 3 France(Jet; 25, 1943

